Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken reviews coronavirus numbers for the Sioux Falls metro area, 11/23/20. Screen capture from the City's Facebook page.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) — City and health officials on Monday updated Sioux Falls on COVID-19.
They are pleased by continuing positive trends, but warn the pandemic is far from over.
They are also optimistic about the COVID vaccines closer than ever to federal approval, and they’ll be ready for distribution.
“We have been planning for distribution of the vaccine and our teams are working tirelessly to identify populations and the logistics for providing the vaccinations,” said Sanford’s Dr. Mike Wilbe.
The vaccine will be distributed in “tiers” and more than purely medical considerations will be used to determine who fits into which tier. City Health Director Jill Franken explained that other factors, including Justice, will also be used.
“So, it should ensure that any barriers are removed so that all persons that are identified in each tier have access to vaccination.”
For example, Sanford Health and Avera Health are looking at how to distribute vaccines to homeless populations.
Avera’s Dr. David Basel said that COVID hospitalizations have stabilized over recent months, but he expects a bump from the Thanksgiving holiday.
“It will be about two weeks before we know if those numbers start increasing again. I think they are going to increase at least a little bit, but hopefully not too much.”
